Anything You Wanna Talk About VI - Prolly Mostly Off-Topic

tapla (mid-MI z5b-6a)May 19, 2013

Thanks for the reminder the thread was almost full. Josh. I've been laying low lately - trying to get the repotting done & the gardens whipped into some kind of shape before I start putting the mixed floral containers together. I think I'm starting to slow down a little, but I still manage to get a full day's work in - I just don't work as FAST as I used to. ;-)

A guy brings his best buddy home for dinner. His wife screams, "You jerk!! My hair & makeup aren't done, the house is a mess, the dishes aren't done, I'm still in my pajamas and I can't be bothered with cooking tonight!

Always a good chuckle from you Al My Mrs as well and even asked remember those days.

It's cultivar is Crosby's compact I have the same " keep track of all the cultivars" problem too.

BZ: Nahhh it's just a close up. A macro allows even closer shots to remain in focus and would show one single white dot in the red tops in detail.

First glance I was thinking the cart was a portable move around sifter but sees it's as a movable big ole pot for something or a multifunctional sifter planter two in one . Either way it's a good idea.

Another close up of a stem and on a E.Squarrosa a quick look at it's Cyathium makes it real easy to figure out why it's grown mainly for it's caud

kool thanks Al now I just have to wait a few months for spring , funny round ball we live on isn't it one half doing the opposite to the other :) Al I really struggle to get bee's in the yard and thought the herbs may help ? got any ideas on the best ones for bee's ? I have no 1st hand experience with getting the bee's to come. they have just always been around but it seems they are not any more :(

I am going to grow some lavender and hyssop in some garden beds see they work, and the smaller herbs in the planter, maybe I answered my own question but I am open to ideas that's how I ended up here :) and well the older I get the more I know I don't know :)

wish someone helped me out like that LOL no only joking its a joke isn't it :)

mrlike2u everyone around here said it looked like a hot dog cart , so it has many uses but no its just a planter to follow the sun or get away from it a bit if need be, now if I could just put the same effort in to making a couple of sifters that would be great then I could plant a few fruit trees in pots :)

what sort of camera is it do you have a macro lens been so long sense I got mine out I would forget how to use it, SLR with all the lens out school but very affective , now just use the digital its much cheaper isn't it :) thanks again for the pic :)

Hey, guys and gals!
That was a good chuckle, Al ;-)
Well this isn't a macro shot, but here's a Hoya pubicalyx 'Pink Silver' bloom. The scent is so strong and cloying at night that I snip off the flower after I've enjoyed a couple days of the bloom...otherwise, it chokes me as the odor congests the living room.

I wonder if that is why the DH runs to the bedroom when the doorbell rings?

;-)

Beautiful pics Wes... Love the detail in the last pic... Great clarity in that pic!

BZ.. Love your cart,Too! I could see a cart full of lavender.. Mmmmm, that would look beautiful.. Even a cart full of different herbs would be awesome with them cascading down the sides.. Please post pics when you start this project.. It will be time for us to start putting our plants to bed when you are ready to plant?

Hi Josh!!!

What a beauty!!!, love the " Pink Silver"
Hope you are well!

Ok, I was playing with my camera and my little friend would only pose for a few moments... I hope you all enjoy! ;-)

love the Frog , also my friend loves frogs so will show her she will think its verykool :)

thanks to everyone on here that shares its a great site and I am learning heaps and then trying it out and so far so good sure with time I will get the FEEL of what I am doing and not all head knowledge and I know there is a big difference from other things I do.

Nice big bold blooms Josh I think a macro would of soiled the pleasurable view of your Hoya

BZ LOL A hot dog stand is the last thing I would of seen and thought of. Both close ups are from a D3100 Nikon used the standard 18-55 MM telephoto zoom with 3 close up filters I Agrees any camera that is film free is much better on the wallet saving film and developing cost.

Aside from getting clear closer focused shots there is a small advantage to close up filters as well but cant always be seen until loaded on to the computer for a clear view...
Sedum hernadezii in the earl morning sun
There is no scratch on your computer screen can you see it ?

Argh! Going down to 35* tonight ...... clear and calm - maybe a frost. Have over 100 tender trees outdoors. Taking a chance and not bringing them in for just 1 night. Pray for my trees ...... and for the Red Wings over Chicago in another grudge match later tonight. ;-)

Laura - can you find the website associated with your frog pic? Was it something that could be purchased?

Not really BZ it's just a couple very thin / fine spider webb on the left top redder bean aiming downward to the bigger bean beneath it
No not spider mites this time but are also very easily found by the same idea as plants in pic progress with only two close up filters or for a total of plus 6.

I got distracted by Laura and her frog I still need at least one of them, if not for anything else at least for the right of passage. Al I have to say you do have the monopoly and also with assortments of them.

Josh: Talking about lower nite temps, I suggest you dont but if you should as mishap ought to see what happens to an Aloe when you leave it out side with the temp swings like that over nite. It's not the low temps that bother me to much it's when they dont get back up to 70's or more during the day for three to five days.

Well - there was no frost last night, but we have a severe weather watch (for frost) tonight again, which again was totally unexpected - alert just went up @ 6:00. AND, our last (expected) frost date is 5/15. Hopefully my luck will hold.

I hope everyone has a good weekend. Part of mine will include changing the rope on the flag pole & putting up a fresh flag ..... and remembering what the holiday is about. Take care, guys.

Laura I'm sure I could get a frog but only if I knew the Where's the garden frogs code words that allow the hidden frogs to be reviled for viewing would allow me to get one, seems they're a hard to find item in my areas of garden shops. Ohh maybe the wink is a hint I'll have to see if that works if it does thanks ahead of time.

Conversation between God and St.Francis. It is hilarious because it is so true.

GOD: Frank, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is
going on down there on the planet? What happened to the dandelions, violets,
milkweeds and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance
garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and
multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts
butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast
garden of colours by now. But, all I see are these green rectangles.
St.FRANCIS:It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They
started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great lengths to kill them
and replace them with grass.
GOD: Grass? But, it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract
butterflies, birds and bees; only grubs and sod worms. It's sensitive to
temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing
there?
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep
it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any
other plant that crops up in the lawn.
GOD: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast.
That must make the Suburbanites happy.
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut
it-sometimes twice a week.
GOD: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?
ST. FRANCIS: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.
GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?
ST. FRANCIS: No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.
GOD: Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow.
And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?
ST. FRANCIS: Yes, Sir.
GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on
the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a
lot of work.
ST. FRANCIS: You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops
growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they
can
continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.
GOD: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer
stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring
to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the
ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect
the trees and bushes. It's a natural cycle of life.
ST. FRANCIS: You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new
circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay
to have them hauled away.
GOD: No! What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter
and to keep the soil moist and loose?
ST. FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something
which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of
the leaves.
GOD: And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.
GOD: Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you're
in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?
ST. CATHERINE: 'Dumb and Dumber', Lord. It's a story about....
GOD: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.

Happy Father's Day, indeed! Jodi, great to see you, and definitely looking forward to pics. We've had an exceptional season, although the heat hit us early on in April and May. Sacramento reached 108F last Saturday....yeah, I was down visiting my brother. Ice cold beer was the only solution ;-)

Lol - ..... didn't mean to mislead you. I didn't really retire yet. I bought land and built a new building for the business in 2000. The business pays me rent & I pay the mortgage. Things are structured so it will all be paid for when I'm 65 (3 years), which is when I plan on fully retiring and turning the business part of things over to my brother, or selling. I only average working 25-30 hrs a week now, but by then I'll be almost completely out of the business except for consulting as needed.

Take care Jodi - I hope you're able to keep the spirits high, even if the body isn't quite so willing.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads. The kids will all be here for a cookout Sunday, so I'll have a busy weekend.

I've got a BP pepper too, I'll have to remember to pay attention to how it's doing. It's part of a larger mixed planting put together over Mem Day, so it'll be just getting going as the weather finally turns a little warmer. Been cool here, o/a.

I'm 'curing' a new Smoker right now...going to load it with meat for a Father's Day bbq tomorrow. Everyone'll be here.

This Black Pearl overwintered in a 2-gallon pot in 5-1-1. It did so well that I didn't even re-pot this season...just pruned off some of the Winter die-back and let it go. As expected, it was the first pepper to set pods.

Woman:
So a beer costs $5 and you have 3 beers a day which puts your
spending each month at $450. In one year, it would be approximately $5,400. correct?

Man:
Correct

Woman:
If in 1 year you spend $5400, not accounting for inflation, the past
20 years puts your spending at $108,000, correct?

Man:
Correct

Woman:
Do you know that if you didn't drink so much beer, that money could have been put in a step-up interest savings account and after accounting for compound interest for the past 20 years, you could have now bought a Ferrari?

Hope your trees are doing well, Al.. My Plumeria are taking off right now and I'm loving them!!! I'll post some pics for you all soon...

Hello to everyone!!!

Hope you all are having a wonderful summer!!!

Taking my kids to see Jimmy B on Saturday... Getting excited!! I said I had seen him so many times, that I was done. Then my daughter was ill and I promised her two years ago when she had heart surgery that I would take her. Well, as I prayed, Jimmy told me he would visit VB and to bring my daughter.. ;-). So Voila!!! He is here!!!

Hello, everybody! Just stopped in to see what's up. We're doing okay... getting a lot more moisture than we did last year, which has saved us from having to drag out hoses and sprinklers, and has saved wear and tear on the well pumps.

However, some of the roses aren't too happy with the higher humidity, and some sort of beetle has been happily munching the leaves off certain varieties... but the Daylilies are coming on strong, and are quite gorgeous this time of year!

My 2 favorites are in bloom at the moment... "Wild Horses" and a double peach with a lost tag!

Every plant in a pot that I took outside is growing gangbusters, in a rendition of the Gritty Mix, and I'm happy to report that my two orchids both have new growth! My only Hoya, one with lighter green leaves, is really putting on new growth, and the Chalice Vine needs another haircut before it reaches the ceiling!

We haven't been able to travel this summer to see the kids yet, due to lower finances, but everyone is doing good...

I missed my window to grow a huge veggie garden this season... there's always next, though. I just have too many other things going on. We have 2 mowers down, so I'm in charge of cutting all the yard sections... with a push mower. It's not that bad, really... the mower is new, and it's good exercise, I keep telling myself!

I have so many photos... I simply haven't yet transferred them to my computer. Hopefully I can get that done soon... I really want to share some of them! I just need a little help from the Old Guy... LOL!

Welcome back, Jodi! You remind me...I've got to mow the front yard this morning. We had a heavy Summer storm that dumped an inch of rain here, and that brought the grass back. I hope you're getting pics as the flowers come on :-)

Lol... but in reality he is scared of squirrels, mice birds and all. No Joke. We let him outside and he just runs back in. But h does love to eat plants. BTW his name is Beno and that is why I am Mr Beno.

I warned him the other day if I ever catch eating a tomatoe that ripes on the window sil that I would castrate him. He then cursed at me in cat language and said I am already neutered.

HI Spaceman... I'm sure we all know what Al means when he posted this new thread. I believe it has turned over five time at 150 posts..so I think he can have a pass when he posted this new thread of " anything". At number VI. We all have had spelling errors and or grammar mistakes.. Most of us are here to relax and have fun...

We know what he meant... So if he wants to spell it " Prolly". I think it's alright with 99 percent of us. Just my opinion. ;-). It's ok with me...

So... Here is a pic just because I want to make us feel good and not worry about other things...

Yes, Australian Shepherd. My 2nd Aussie, I love the breed. Smart dogs, almost like a child. I have 2 of those too :)
Wow those Adeniums look very cool. I want one now! I recently added Night Jasmine. I guess the most fragrant flower in the world. I also have a few cacti, so like unusual plants. I even have a cactus that can take our zone 6a winters, and is outside in the ground.

Since we are on the pet topic....If you have about 8 minutes to waste and want to just waste time check out my other Benocat vid.

True story though he was originally adopted by my sister in law about 10 years ago and was 3-4 years old at a shelter. then she adopted another cat. And they lived together for awhile and loved each other in cat love?

lol But then they moved and a neighborhod outdoor cat named jake used to come to their door and wait. "Olivia" was the female cat that my cat "Beno" lived with. But when Beno saw that Olivia showed interest he started attacking her and they had to be seperated. So my brother brought "Beno" over in his cat carrier and since then I got him. He is showing his age we think he is around 14.

Sorry for the drama lol but I love filming animals and this video was when I was taking a bath upstairs and currious of what my cat did when the camera was on.

My next pet will be an Irish Wolfhound I think and in the past I had another blue tabby femail cat when I was around 7 and other dogs in my life were a Silky Terrrier, German shepper/Doberman mix when I lived in Queens, Collie/Retriever mix and a Pug in my teenage years in the 80's/90's. The other pets were a cockatiel and many fish.

Awwww. What a cute video of your " Mr. Beno". He sure looks like he is lost in his thoughts... Made me so relaxed myself!!! l always love to hear about animals.. Great stories and what a wonderful assortment of beloved pets you had...

Always In Our hearts...

I think I will go and think about my little dog that I just lost..." Pepper"

Thank you for sharing...

Hi Drew.. I have heard that those Austrailian Shepards are very smart and I think yours is just beautiful. Thanks for sharing the pics.. You have two? Lucky!!!!

I also love Adeniums, Arabicums and soco's truly wonderful trees.

Jasmines are very fragrant. Have you ever tried Tuberoses? They are another one that are super fragrant.. Ok... Time to relax like " Mr. Beno.."

Laura, thanks for the info. I grow mostly fruit, although I do grow some cacti too. I have for 37 years. I will look into those plants. I have a clumping bamboo that is very pretty, and a tri-color beech tree. Both are small, but larger specimens of both are striking. Next year I will be adding a lot of flowers to attract beneficial insects. It cuts the use of pesticides, and since honey bees are scarce these days attracts other bees. I love growing plants!
Since I grow edibles I'll show some that are both ornamental and edible! Here is the variegated elderberry Sambucus nigra 'Pulverulenta' . Mine is rather small, photo from the web. It's so white looking, from far away it looks like flowers. Beautiful plant!

Oh, I only have Jesse, my first Aussie passed last July. We miss him so much. I didn't plan on getting another, but I saw Jesse and he was a great dog, AKC registered, cheap price, I could not say no.

The tri-color beech has such striking leaves people always stop and ask what it is. It also produces edible nuts. It is an extremely hard tree to grow requiring shade and some morning sun, else the leaves burn badly. I only have a seedling. A 5 foot tree costs about $150.00.

Great stuff everyone and love the color Drew and love the shepard, my friend has an Austrailon Shepard, he is about 10 or so now and the funny thing about his Shepard is that he named in Marely before the movie was out, he is still pissed to this day because everyone thinks he named it after the dog in the movie.

Thanks for the comments Laura. I love your pets Al, your cat must be a male? Also I got a very good question Al about your mix and with your cat. Your mix is doing tremendous for my plants.

Do you have any mixes for cat litter boxes? I am serious because my cat is aging and we thought he was going a month ago thwoing up nonstop and has been running through cat litter nonstop as well. We changed his food to moisture food and seems to be doing much better and gaining weight.

But that would be incredible to have an "Al's 5-1-1 Kitty litter mix" solution. We are spending a ton on it.

For Drew and everyone: I attached a photo of the Austrailan shepard. I made it a couple of years ago for him, just hoping the animated Gif works here.

I myself like Jodik have not been feeling to good these days, taking care of parents too...But I can honestly say that I have been staying out of touble though and enjoying my real frogs and pond trying to cope with this dreadfully very dry summer.

Jodik, I am wishing you well and that you get the strentgh back to be energized to spend countless of hours in your garden...

Al, I was going to congratulate you too..lol Good thing you cleared that up and that frog that Laura posted would look great in your yard!

Hello Josh and everyone else..

Laura. As usual..WOW,,Such beauty from a beautiful person...

Thank you for such a great read thus far...Just love those black pepers too Josh!

Yes, two types, and I have both. The darker one (Albovariegata) grows a lot faster. Pulverulenta is not an easy plant to grow. Still worth trying though as it is a cool looking plant.
Joy creek nursery carries them, but they are small plants. Not super small, but small for elders. About 8 inches tall.
Click on "availability" to order (they have 25 of them right now).
They have Albovariegata too. Even though this is not as white, it still is a very handsome plant, and is more vigorous than Pulverulenta. Here's a photo of Albovariegata, from the web, not my plant. My plants are up north at my cottage, and I don't have any photos here.

Looks like Mr Beno wants a BLT without the lettuce and Bacon!!! ;-)
I love all of the great stories too!!! Wonderful thread to come to and just smile... Great picture of Marley sitting there in his new shirt. Nice of you to make that for him, Butcher... But, he really doesn't look like he is really into this whole scene.. Lol. I can hear him say... " REALLY?" Lol. Sooo cute!!!
I have heard of so many wonderful things lately about Aussie Shepards . I might have to look into this breed too. We are in a search now for a new dog to bring into our home. A few choices, but still looking..

Drew.. I'm sorry for the loss of your other Aussie . I must have missed read your post. I see now that you have two kids. One dog. Love the markings on the cutie!!! Do they shed much? Thanks for the great pics too. I really love the tri colored Beech. Just beautiful!!!

Sounds like you have a great vegetable garden!!! Good luck and make sure Mr Beno doesn't travel to your area for lunch . He may need some other veggies to go along with his tomatoes!!! ;-)

HI MIke!!! Sorry to hear your not feeling well... It has been a hot summer down here in Virginia!! I'm talking temps in the high 90's to the triple digits.
I was in Philly the other day and it was 115 on the ramp. Talk about being hot... OMG. Thank you for the comments on my trees. They are really loving this heat and the coloration in the blooms are changing all of the time. The heat and humidity play a major role in the colors.. I'm in heaven with my Plumeria right now.. Hope all is well with your mom and dad. Give them a hug for me and tell sissy I said hello. My nephew is graduating from the first traing session to become a navy Seal. We are so proud...

HI Jodi and Josh!!! .. Hope you all are doing well.. Josh, my Squill is blooming again. I thought of you when it sent out its first flowers, then it sent another one. I guess I'll keep talking to it .. Lol. It must like the company. I just leave it alone and it takes off. I haven't repotted it lately, but now I don't want to disturb it since it has bloomed twice in a month. I'm stoked!!!

Hi Al!!

Your little pooch was hiding up on the chair when I first looked at the picture!!!

Lol. Looks like he is stalking Louie... " better watch out , Louie!!!"

Bedhead or not... He is still a cutie!!! Give him a treat!! Over at the Plumeria forum, we all sometimes just announce that it is " give your dog or animal a treat day!!!" Lol. To much fun!!! We all love our animals and plants.

I guess that is what makes us happy in life... ;-)

Have a good day everyone,,,

Drew... If you ever see another tri color Beech seedling.. Will you let me know? I would love to call around and find one. I'll try that nursery up thread. Thanks,,, my friend though he had an Aussie Shepard that he got from a rescue. But it turned out to be an English Shepard. He is writing a book about this particular dog.. They are special.. Now he has two others... They are like adults. So smart!!!

Hello! I've been remiss in visiting this Thread, and many thanks to Mike for reminding me to check in! Such beautiful and artful shots from everyone...and Mr. Beno eyeing them Ramapos just cracks me up. Cats are such observant, suspicious looking creatures.

It's hot here in northern California...triple digits through tomorrow, and then we're supposed to cool off into the mid-90F's for the weekend; which is good news, since I'm working weekends outdoors this Summer. I'm at the same Farm I worked last year, Jardin del Rio, overlooking the wonderful Bear River. This year I'm at the fruit and veggie stand, selling the things we grow, as well as cooking samples and pickled goods to be sold (our best seller, spicy pickled brussel sprouts!).

Earlier this week, we canned salsa and pickled cucumbers (dill, sweet, bread and butter, medium spicy, spicy, and...Ghostly). Yeah, I made a personal jar of spicy salt and pepper cucumbers, with a Red and Yellow Bhut Jolokia added to the jar! I'm afraid to try these pickles....

File this under the "small world" department. Besides gardening, I also like to collect (and sometimes drag race) classic muscle cars. I have to store them in a warehouse and have rented space in a couple of them around the area over the years. I kept them for a while at a place in Richmond - the owner had lots of warehouse space, leased some to a furniture company, and used the rest for his own chemical company of some kind.

Turns out that company of his was...Dyna-Grow, makers of foliage pro. I should go down there and see if I can get some at a discount!!

Hey! Just stopping in to drop off a link to my photo album, featuring this year's garden pictures. I'm not finished sorting through them or uploading, so there will be more, but here's a start...

This is "Alchemist" earlier this spring with a purple Clematis next to it on the same fence... one of my favorite shots this season.

Maybe someone can identify this plant for me... it's got rounded leaves, grows close to the ground, prefers a semi-shady area, and this is what its flowers look like... they are found hiding under the leaves toward the ground...

I'll let everyone peruse the album at their leisure... enjoy!

And I also wanted to say that I enjoyed all the pictures everyone posted... they're wonderful! Thank you all for sharing!

It could be Canadian wild ginger - Asarum canadense; it has 'hairy' inconspicuous flowers growing near ground...hard to see the leaves, they should be kind-of heart shaped with rounded 'point'...does that make sense?.
Here is the photo of mine growing under the big spruce tree:

The leaves are the same, though yours look shinier... thanks for identifying the plant, Rina!

Mine is growing under a pink French Pussy Willow shrub with a Silver Lace Vine threaded through it. I didn't plant the Ginger there, and was going to pull it out as a weed at one time, but discovered those interesting looking flowers, and decided to leave it grow. I'm glad I did.

Here's a picture of "Jeanne LaJolie", I believe, growing up into the Fuji Apple tree... it really looked spectacular earlier this spring!

To show scale, this fence is about 8' in height, and circles the inner yard where the dogs run. The idea was to cover the fence so the dogs wouldn't bark at joggers or bicyclists, and I think we got our living fence! These are roses from the Canadian Explorer series, I believe...

This bed is partially shaded, and contains both Hostas and Roses... proving that some rose varieties can tolerate a bit of shade, and some hostas can deal with a little sun...

My most favorite rose, "Autumn Damask", growing on the fence right next to the garage door. The scent is positively intoxicating! Unfortunately, it only blooms once in spring and seldom flushes later in the season. But it's worth growing just for the scent!

Who knew "Climbing White Iceberg" would envelop the 8' fence and spill over in such a glorious manner? To the right, you can see a red Knockout peeking through the fence.

The wonderful combination of a purple Clematis, peachy "Alchemist", the bright red of an old fashioned climber, and the yellow of a Standard Iris look so nice together with the apple tree and its miniature pink climber...

This is the view from my window, facing west and looking down into the gardens and yard...

Thanks for looking... hope you enjoyed a short tour of this year's gardens!

Beautiful roses jodik, the Alchemist is really gorgeous.
I don't grow any except a bush od Fairy rose, because Japanese beetles seem to love roses...Do you battle them too? I 'shake' some into a bottle of soapy water early in the morning. They like many other plants, lately found them munching on wisteria.

There is many different Asarums. I liket the plant, it is great grouncover for shady spot. Want to get some with spotted leaves, like one in the photo (found on web)
Rina

Hello, guys and gals...!
Jodi, the roses and the entire yardscaping are looking fantastic - a real show this season! We're deep into the drouth of High Summer here, so things aren't too green...but a few blooms are still bringing color to the place. The Tiger Lilies just began to bloom this week....

Yes, Rina... the Japanese Beetles devour many of our roses each season, but they do seem to only eat the leaves off of certain varieties... so there are still plenty of roses in full leaf. I don't use any chemicals or soaps, and just consider the sacrifice part of the whole experience. I didn't even use any systemics this year.

"The Fairy" is an excellent rose. I'm pretty sure we have at least one out there somewhere...

Nice leaf pattern on the Asarum...

Hey, Josh! I love Lilies... ours are about done for the season, the Tiger Lilies in orange, yellow and pink finished up a couple of weeks ago. We've been very lucky in getting plenty of rain this season. I haven't even had to drag out any soaker hoses, and the only thing I'm watering are container plants.

I do have pictures of the Lilies from this season... I just have to find them in the huge file and prepare them for uploading. We have several types... the Tiger Lilies, Orientals, and one huge white flowered Lily that looks like the kind you see potted during Easter. Then there are the Daylilies... all colors of the rainbow, including singles and doubles, my favorite double peach Daylily, and my new favorite, "Wild Horses"! I planted it last year, and it bloomed well this season! I should have photos up soon.

This season has been just spectacular for the gardens! The roses bloomed better than I could have imagined, and the companion plantings did very well, too! The apple tree is loaded with apples, and the paw paw has fruit, too!

Been really busy lately, but see all the posts to this thread. I wanted to stop & say how much I'm enjoying the chatter and all the lovely pics! Really enjoy the tours, guys.

Gotta go see if I can figure out why our surround sound receiver keeps going into safety. I'm pretty sure it'll be a dead end for me. There is no dust to be blocking air flow, so it's gotta be a part. Sigh. ;-)

Thanks again - makes me want to grab the camera and see what I can find!

All this talk of summer is driving me crazy!!! Where is summer?
We have only had one week of beach weather and now it's back to fall already.....I think I am getting a bit sick of even shorter summers although the low 40's for July is very comfortable for sleeping..Well not for the frogs though, I caught them sitting by a camp fire last night!

Jodik...AMAZING summery pictures! I have yet to visit your pics and write you a letter..I've been a bit lazy about doing things these days but not lazy in the thought department:-)
Is that a 'RED MAPLE' I see there? I am into Japanese Maples...
I have yet to take a nice week vacation and sleep in past 4:30 a.m which is the time I'e gotten up for the past 2 years.
You are thought of as well as,

Josh, hello pal and what a bunch of great looking edibles!!!!
I can only imagine my tongue touching a bit of that and I say no thanks..lol
Oh Josh, I meant to say..It's a miracle! You did it..That flower is a beauty!

Laura: As always, just spectacular! I only wish I could get enough hot weather to pop one flower and last.
I have one plumeria on the top of my flat roof, the hottest part of my owned space in the world, and yet only one tiny inflo..:-(
I LOVE that top nice pastel peachy looking one..Hoping all is well with you:-)
That hot you experienced must of been a bad dream, because I can't seem to remeber when it was that hot here..lol

Hello Al.....I hear you about being busy..Tired too:-(

I just finished painting my house and garage and just made an arbor...I'll take a pic for you all...:-)

40's tonight..I knew we would get a very early start to fall!

To Rina and any others I may have missed, so good to see you all and hope everyone is ok.

Al, I'm glad to know that you're looking in. Thanks for the re-inforcement throughout the Fora, as well. Always nice to have the man, the myth, the legend stopping by to impart wisdom. Really helps to encourage newcomers to grit and bark-based mixes.

Hey, Mike, thanks! Let me tell you, I was a *little* worried about those Ghost Pickles....but they aren't that bad! I cracked open the jar the other night and ate about ten of those pickles slices. At first, the tongue tickles, then the hot glow of the Ghost pepper begins to build in the tongue. Overall, the heat lasts about ten minutes. I am going to dice a few and make a spicy tuna sandwich.

I also pickled brussel sprouts last week...and I made two personal jars with Naga Morich peppers (another superhot). I haven't opened those yet - I'm going to give one to a friend.

Hi guys. Hope you're all doing well. In case you missed it in the news, the Perseid meteor shower is starting to heat up. It peaks on Aug 12-13, so if you get a chance to look up into the night sky, especially in rural areas where there isn't much light pollution, you'll probably be rewarded with lots of opportunities to make a wish.

Yes, Mike, that's a Japanese Maple I have in a large container. The leaves are really pretty!

Don't worry about anything, Mike... I've been a bit blah, myself, lately. Our weather is still hot during the day, though it's been cooling off at night somewhat.

I've been busy re-potting a lot of stock that I couldn't get to last season, and sorting through everything in containers.

The one large Plumeria I have is outside, growing leaves like crazy... but so far, no inflo... no sign that it wants to bud or branch. Is there something I need to do in order to make it bloom?

Josh, I don't know how you can eat so much hot food! I like spicy foods, but the hot kills my taste buds and is difficult for my mouth to handle! My stomach can take it, but my mouth cannot!

We're in the process of picking and processing some of the Fuji apples from our tree. The Old Guy has made organic apple butter with cinnamon, apple sauce... and we have plans to can most of them in various ways for later cooking and baking.

We've also been doing a lot of other organic cooking... organic peanut butter cookies using coconut flour, chocolate sugar cookies with organic flour and German cocoa... and the sugar we've been using is either organic, or we substitute organic raw honey.

I have lots of photos to upload yet... I just haven't really found the time to get it all done.

The gardens were positively fabulous this year... I still can't over how wonderfully all the roses bloomed, or how awesome all the companion perennials were! I really wish I had had the time to plant an extensive vegetable garden, like I wanted to... but things got away from me... I have so much to do and so little time to do it all. We did manage to get one tomato plant in, though it's not doing as well as I'd hoped.

Even if we did manage to find time to plant a veggie garden, I'd need to make certain it was fenced in so any escaped goats can't destroy it.

I did manage to find some of the lily photos I took earlier...

This is the infamous "Wild Horses" Daylily I like so much...

And the double peach that puts on such a great show...

A gorgeous red with a yellow eye...

And finally, a pink shrub rose that looks more like a Tea Rose...

It's really nice to hear from everyone, and see all the wonderful pictures! I hope to get more photos uploaded soon!

Oh, beautiful "Wild Horses" lily! I see why you love it so much, Jodi!

When it comes to heat, my mouth can handle it...but my stomach can not. If I eat one of the superhot peppers raw, I will throw it back up. So I eat progressively larger slivers until I'm able to chew half-pods. Last week, I made these jars of spicy pickled brussel sprouts with Naga Dorset peppers in each. One jar for myself, one jar for my buddy, Jason. We cracked into his the other night, and the sprouts really weren't all that hot. Even his wife was able to enjoy a piece! :-)

It may help to keep plenty of baking soda on hand, Josh... mix about a teaspoon with a little water and drink it for a natural antacid. It's not a great taste, but it sure does work instantly to put out the fire of heartburn!

And, it's a natural acid neutralizer... handy to have for battery acid or other chemical burns... mix a paste using a little water and place it on the burn to stop any chemical action. I keep several boxes handy... it's cheap enough. And it sure beats all the junk in pharmaceutical alternatives.

Nice looking brussels sprouts! I would like them pickled, but not hot! Pickled green beans and cauliflower are good, too!

"Wild Horses" Daylily has wonderful color contrast, and it shows up nicely in the garden! I've wanted one for a long time, and we happened to find one at a local Daylily grower right down the road! This is its first year of bloom for me, and I'm very pleased with the results!

The Old Guy has been doing a lot of experimental baking lately, and last night he made white bread using organic, non-GMO flour and organic cane sugar... it turned out delicious! It's the perfect bread for garlic toast!

We stopped eating commercially prepared breads a while ago because of their use of GMO grain, bleaching, bromine use, corn sugar use, and additives like cellulose... which is actually wood pulp. The processing, preserving, and use of questionable ingredients always made me feel bloated and sick... but organic bread is really good. It doesn't affect me in any negative way.

Today, he's making organic peanut butter cookies! Yay! :-)

And I'll be making chicken stew with vegetables in the crock pot.

Eating healthier makes a big difference in how I feel, physically speaking. Our overall commercial food source is so compromised... and so much is allowed by our govt. agencies that has been proved to be unhealthy, and not available in many other countries... it make such a difference to eat healthy, organic, natural foods!

Here's another interesting Daylily with nice color... a pink with yellow center...

And red Lilies...

Here are more red Lilies with "Yellow Rose of Texas"...

Hey, Mike... how are your roses doing?

I'm still digging through my photo file, pulling out decent pictures to size and upload, so more are coming...

Wow! that yellow-centered Lily looks painted, Jodi!
You have a phenomenal collection, truly!

We've been pickling up a storm, and this week will be more of the same! We can't keep the brussel sprouts on the shelves...people love them for bloody mary's and martinis. We've also pickled green beans, wax peppers, cauliflower, three colors of carrots, and soon we'll be pickling our green okra. Last week, I processed over 200 pounds of tomatoes for salsa...and we're not done yet.

This week was also the Nevada County Fair, one of the top 10 in California. Well, we entered tons of our produce...and we ended up winning Best of Show for our tomatoes....in addition, 20 first place ribbons for tomatoes, peppers, beets, Ichiban eggplant, and a bunch of others, 20 second place ribbons, and 7 third place ribbons. Overall, we trounced the gardening competition. A total blowout! But enough of that.

Jodi, I've been following the Paleo Diet as closely as I can, so I've cut out all grains and, thus, breads. I am using a tapioca bread for my BLT sandwiches - gotta have a BLT after all. It took some getting used to, and eliminating cheese and all other dairy was tough...but now I'm adjusted. I feel great, and I shed 20 pounds within two months.

Just for you.... Sunset over the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia Beach, Va...

Nice way to unwind... Hope you are feeling better!!!

Inflos can take anywhere from two weeks to four weeks to fully open.. Depends on the heat, health and amount of sunlight and fertilizer.. So many variables. Each tree is different. I hope you have one?

Hi Josh... You make me want to " put up" some veggies. For this winter. I haven't done one jar.. ;-(. But, I really can't handle anything spicy.. I'll choke to death... ;-). Been there done that!!! LOL!!!

Glad you are having a great season with your garden!!!

Hi Jodi!!!

Some of my Plumeria haven't bloomed in years.. Just continue the great care that you give, I'm sure one day you will have a beauty that will surprise you!! Heat... Heat, sun... ;-). It takes years to reach maturity for them to bloom. This year has been the best for me and I have been waiting for a loooong time!!!

Love all of your pics...

Hi Al.. Hope you are well and enjoying the summer!!

Hello to everyone!!!

Have a wonderful day...

Some other pics...

My Lavender Plumeria .. Means so much to me..

San Miguel.. Gifted from Bud Guillot. He is 91 years young and climbed the tree for this cutting years ago.. What a gentleman!!!
A double inflo.. Which is rare on my Saigon Moon from Bud...

I am having a good summer, Laura. Thanks. Getting ready to abandon the Mrs for a few days and head west to Chicago and the Midwest Bonsai Show at the Botanic Garden. I've been looking forward to it since last year.

Thanks to all for sharing the beautiful pictures and HI to everyone. I hope all your growing efforts are paying big returns. ;-)

This one is from my friend, a retired beer distributor. It's been around, but maybe some haven't seen it.

The Theory of Intelligence

I've never heard the concept explained any better than this.......

'Well you see, Al, it's like this .... A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members. In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells… Now, as we know, excessive intake of alcohol kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine. And that, Al, is why you always feel smarter after a few beers.'

Laura....You are just an AWESOME and THOUGHTFUL human being always thinking of us....:-)))
You know how I feel about sunsets and plumerias.....

I am loving those flowers! I only wish I had more than a month of hot weather to flower my Plumeria and beautifully as you do yours!
I really am beginning to think you threaten them with a plunge in the pool if they don't produce....
Great work. I love them all!
I think the next time I get any of them, I am going to keep them going all winter under lights.

Hoping you are enjoying your summer too although everyone around here is saying our is already over a month early....50 degrees last night:-0*(

Hello to all and have a great day. Thanks for such nice pictures and stories..

In the photo you posted earlier (and I copied here), I see some pond (?) baskets with what looks like young plants/cuttings? Would you mind telling me what they are (the plants) and why are baskets sunk in the soil?
Thanks. Rina

Well, school's back in....so things are going to get busy! I'm teaching Drama this semester, wish me luck. 40 students in one class, 52 students in another. That's quite a lot of wrangling to do ;-)

Rina, indeed those are pond-baskets, and I sink them into the ground to protect my in-ground plants from gopher or mole damage (mostly the heaving of soil and tipping of plants). The small plants are Hungarian Wax peppers and Thai chiles. They are much larger now...although the Thai's are still small from battling aphids.

I used to sink containers into the ground, but these pond-baskets allow much better root spread. Makes digging up a pepper much easier for overwintering, too.

Your Squill looks about the same size as mine. Will you keep it in the same container this year? I'm thinking of potting up, but like yours.. I have little ones to start. I may just wait until spring now to repot and separate.

I am so glad to see yours flower.. What a wonderful feeling to see the flower emerge...

Do you grow any Tuberose? They are so fragrant and I think they would do well for you too!!

Hi Mike!! Glad you enjoyed the sunset picture!! I love that time at the beach watching the sunset over the Chesapeake Bay. Heading to the beach tomorrow, so hopefully the temps will be warm enough to swim!!

Those top Plumeria are really strong bloomers.. I highly recommending those cultivars..

The Naked Ladies are about done for the season, here... I'll upload the photos as soon as I feel a little more myself... I've been kinda blah lately.

A nice pickle collection, to be sure, Josh! :-)

And a very nice Squill! The flowers aren't much as flowers go, but it's exciting to see the buds grow!

Mike, I called and left a message, but got you by email... it was good to hear from you! My bad on the phone tag... I can't remember for the life of me to keep my darn phone charged! Sorry about that! Sending our love to you and Mom!

Laura, your Plumeria are gorgeous! I know one day this one will bloom... I'm just impatient! :-)

Al, I sure wish I could have attended the Bonsai show... that would have been really great to meet up with you in Chi-town... but alas, we need new tires before we can travel any distance. It's on the agenda. (Sigh!)

I hope summer is going well for everyone... I'm off to make more coffee and start my day...

Josh, what a great idea about the pond baskets! leave it to you to come up with such great ideas..I shall have to keep this in mind...
Josh, are those Lilies? I love them!@

Jodik...No worries...Hugs back from us and yes we shall chat soon...No worries. I have not talked to Laura for quite a while too....We shall find the time soon and by the way, please stay out of pain....:-)

Laura, your flowers are always to die for...You missed your calling...You could probably make a mint teaching others how to grow such beautiful plants....Thank you and I can only imagine the fragrance...
My weather just does not stay hot long enough for such awesome outcomes...

Howdy, Jodi, Laura, Al, and Mike!
Yep, those are lilies...Pink Lady Lily, my favorite. They are almost done blooming now, but the scent is much stronger. This evening I could smell them across the yard...almost an artificial banana smell.

For any who missed it, here's the result of the hard chop on my Pachira. Better than I expected, but exactly as I hoped. This Winter will be much easier indoors :-)

Where in the world is Wes. Ok.. Will this help? " Wes... ". ;-). Lol..miss you!!

I have a few pictures from a friend who is making leis for his mother and her friends. Well, His dogs love them as well and they are to cute not to post. They actually love these leis.. I'm learning the art of lei making too.. Lots of fun.

English Shepherds .. Smart and beautiful....

Here they are at the local luau... They had a blast!!!

You can see they are loving it. Lol

Josh.. I have been thinking of you so much!!! This Squill has bloomed three times this season and it is still in the same container.. Go figure!! I love it!!! ;-)

Nice pics all, thanks for sharing. This one came in my email yesterday - thought it was worth sharing, even if it isn't one of mine:

Here's a couple of coleus I've been pinching:

Over the last decade, I've mentioned innumerable times how happy I was that the property behind me, an abandoned strip mine, was reverting to woodland. There was close to 100 acres of grassland and trees up to about 30 feet. We had all sorts of critters to make friends with. That all changed recently. The new property owners came in and bulldozed nearly the entire parcel. Some neighbors say they're building a track for their motorized toys, and I can see that it looks like that might be true, but I guess I'll have to wait and see. Obviously, I'm heartsick over the whole thing. It reminds me of the old Joni Mitchell song Yellow Taxi with the words,

Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you got til it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot.

Hi, to all. I hope everyone is enjoying the fall. Colors have been beautiful here, but are starting to fade as the leaves fall. Only 65 shopping days until Christmas - anyone here Christmas music yet? I think I heard it last year the day after Halloween.

In 1986, Peter Davies was on holiday in Kenya after graduating from Louisiana State University .

On a hike through the bush, he came across a young bull elephant standing with one leg raised in the air. The elephant seemed distressed, so Peter approached it very carefully with a soothing voice. He got down on one knee, inspected the elephants foot, and found a large piece of wood deeply embedded in it. As carefully and as gently as he could, Peter worked the wood out with his knife, after which the elephant gingerly put down its foot.

The elephant turned to face the man and with a rather curious look on its face, stared at him for several tense moments. Peter stood still as stone, thinking he was about to be trampled. Eventually the elephant put his trunk in the air and trumpeted loudly, as if saluting Peter. The elephant extended his long trunk and rested it on Peter's shoulder, "His Thanks", thought Peter, before the bull turned and slowly limped away. Peter never forgot that elephant or the events of that day.

Twenty years later, Peter was walking through the Chicago Zoo with his teenaged son. As they approached the elephant enclosure, one of the creatures turned and walked over to near where Peter and his son Cameron were standing. The large bull elephant stared at Peter, lifted its front foot off the ground, then put it down. The elephant did that several times then trumpeted loudly, all the while staring at Peter.

Remembering the encounter in 1986, Peter could not help wondering if this was the same elephant. Summoning all his courage, Peter climbed over the railing and made his way into the enclosure. He walked right up to the elephant and stared back in wonder. The elephant trumpeted again, then wrapped its trunk around one of Peter legs, picked him up and slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.

HAHAHA!!!! Great to see you, Al, and a fine funny story.
I sympathize with you over the loss of your woodland habitat...the massive acreage where I hiked and camped as a lad was converted to a golf course and multi-million dollar homes about ten years ago. I think I'd have prefered a less concrete metaphor for the fading of my childhood.

In other news, the backyard flower garden of mostly xeric plants and California natives is still holding some color and keeping the bees and the hummingbirds busy.

Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once
Talked about a contest he was asked to judge.
The purpose of the
Contest was to find the most caring child.
The winner was:

A four-year-old child, whose next door
neighbor was an elderly gentleman, who had recently lost his
wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old
Gentleman's' yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.
When his mother asked him what he had
said to the neighbor, the little boy just said, 'Nothing, I just
helped him cry.'
*********************************************

Teacher Debbie Moon's first graders were
discussing a picture of a family. One little boy in the picture
had a different hair color than the other members. One of her
students suggested that he was adopted.
A little girl said, 'I know all about
adoption, I was adopted..'
'What does it mean to be adopted?', asked
another child.
'It means', said the girl, 'that you grew
in your mommy's heart instead of her tummy!'
************************ *********************

On my way home one day, I stopped to
watch a Little League base ball game that was being played in a
park near my home. As I sat down behind the bench on the first-
base line, I asked one of the boys what the score was.
'We're behind 14 to nothing,' he answered
with a smile.
'Really,' I said. 'I have to say you
don't look very discouraged.'
'Discouraged?', the boy asked with a
puzzled look on his face...
'Why should we be discouraged? We haven't
been up to bat yet.'
*********************** **********************

Whenever I'm disappointed with my spot
in life, I stop and think about little Jamie Scott.
Jamie was trying out for a part in the
school play. His mother told me that he'd set his heart on being
in it, though she feared he would not be chosen..

On the day the parts were awarded, I went
with her to collect him after school. Jamie rushed up to her,
eyes shining with pride and excitement.. 'Guess what, Mom,' he
shouted, and then said those words that will remain a lesson to
me....'I've been chosen to clap and cheer.'
*********************************************

An eye witness account from New York
City , on a cold day in December,
some years ago: A little boy,
about 10-years-old, was standing before a shoe store on the
roadway, barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering with cold.
A lady approached the young boy and said,
'My, but you're in such deep thought staring in that window!'
'I was asking God to give me a pair of
shoes,' was the boy's reply.
The lady took him by the hand, went into
the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks
for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water
and a towel. He quickly brought them to her.
She took the little fellow to the back
part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed
his little feet, and dried them with the towel.
By this time, the clerk had returned with
the socks.. Placing a pair upon the boy's feet, she purchased him
a pair of shoes..
She tied up the remaining pairs of socks
and gave them to him. She patted him on the head and said, 'No
doubt, you will be more comfortable now..'
As she turned to go, the astonished kid
caught her by the hand, and looking up into her face, with tears
in his eyes, asked her:

A US Navy cruiser anchored in Mississippi for a week's shore leave. The first evening, the ship's Captain received the following note from the wife of a very wealthy and influential plantation owner:
"Dear Captain, Thursday will be my daughter Melinda's Debutante Ball. I would like you to send four well-mannered, handsome, unmarried officers in their formal dress uniforms to attend the dance.
They should arrive promptly at 8:00 PM prepared for an evening of polite Southern conversation. They should be excellent dancers, as they will be the escorts of lovely refined young ladies. One last point:no Jews please."

Sending a written message by his own yeoman, the captain replied:
Madam, thank you for your invitation. In order to present the widest possible knowledge base for polite conversation, I am sending four of my best and most prized officers . One is a lieutenant commander, and a graduate of Annapolis with an additional Masters degree from MIT in fluid technologies and ship design.
The second is a lieutenant, one of our helicopter pilots, and a graduate of Northwestern University in Chicago, with a BS in aeronautical engineering. His Masters degree and PhD in aeronautical and mechanical engineering are from Texas Tech University and he is also an astronaut candidate.
The third officer is also a lieutenant, with degrees in both computer systems and information technology from SMU and he is awaiting notification on his doctoral dissertation from Cal Tech.
Finally, the fourth officer, also a lieutenant commander, is our ship’s doctor, with an undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and his medical degree is from the University of North Carolina . We are very proud of him, as he is also a senior fellow in trauma surgery at the Bethesda Military Medical Center.
Upon receiving this letter, Melinda’s mother was quite excited and looked forward to Thursday with pleasure. Her daughter would be escorted by four handsome naval officers without peer (and the other women in her social circle would be insanely jealous).
At precisely 8:00 PM on Thursday, Melinda's mother heard a polite rap at the door which she opened to find, in full dress uniform, four very handsome, smiling black officers.
Her mouth fell open, but pulling herself together, she stammered, "There must be some mistake."
"No, Madam," said the first officer. "Captain GOLDBERG never makes mistakes." ;~)

Looking at the weather.. We are in the 70's today with temps dropping Into the mid 20's this weekend. Brrrr. Strong lines of weather just like last weekend... Argh...

Was that what caused your power outages Al? Strong winds and dangerous tornadoes hit the mid west. I am guessing you had some of that front hit you in MI? Glad to hear your power is on... I know what it is like to have to hook up to generators for days as well as 8 days during one hurricane here in Virginia Beach. I hope all of your plants and property came thru alright...

Hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!! ;-)

Drew.. What a sad sign.. Means a lot after hearing how Al had his back area ( neighbors yard) torn down. So sad.. That reminds me of the song he mentioned. " Paved Paradise... "

Love the fence too! Looks great with all of the beautiful colors!!

I have been arranging all of my plants getting them in their proper place for the winter. My Adeniums that are rather to big to haul upstairs, stay down in the family room because they are gettng to heavy for me to lift up and down.

Much to my surprise.. One of the seed pods decided to open a few days ago inside the house!!! I came home late from a trip and found this.. Glad it wasn't outside because I would have never had a chance to collect the seeds!!

Thought you all would like to see this beautiful act of Mother Nature.. She always surprises me with something.. I just love her!!!

Oops - sorry m'dear. I didn't realize you'd posted. The power was KO'd during the big wind storm weekend before last when a telephone pole blew over into the electrical line that serves our little cul de sac. Since the outage was related only to the few houses (20 or so) in our little corner of the world, we were sort of a low priority compared to the surrounding outages that found hundreds or thousands of homes w/o power. I remember worrying about you when Sandy came calling along the coast. ;-)

Thanks for the pics. In fact, thank everyone for the pics & their comments. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving (Thanks for the wishes, L) and found plenty to be thankful for. We had a houseful of company and extended family. Lol - we even had my wife's ex and his mother over for the day. I'm the cook, so was busy all day making ready to feed the crowd. Dinner was good, and so was the fellowship. It's always nice to have the kids home together at the holidays.

I have seen this group before and a very good friend turned me onto this talented group of youmg go getters.. They are just awesome in the fact that they all sing accapella . Very impressive If i may say so myself. .. It's is so nice to see young talented stars hit the big time with only their true talents. ( their voices)

I hope you and the Mrs and the rest of your family have a wonderful Christmas!

May all of your family have a wonderful Christmas holiday!!! I hope Santa is good to you too!! ;-)

One of my guys at work asked me if I'd ever heard of the group (Pentatonix) before. He's a lot younger than I, so when I started talking about their cover of the song "Royals", he was REALLY surprised I even knew they existed. I know I shared this with you before, but others might be interested in listening/seeing it: Perpetuum Jazzile singing "The Rains in Africa". Turn your speakers up!

We had a nice snowstorm last Friday...dumped a few inches here, and about nine inches at my sister's. With the weather this week being cold by our standards, 20F's by night and 40F's by day, the snow has stuck around. Today we broke into the 50F's, though, so it'll melt quickly.

I truly enjoyed every photo posted! Gorgeous plants and flowers, gardens and pets, and the skill to grow it all... most wonderful! Thank you all for sharing!

The gardens are quietly sleeping, and growth has slowed indoors, as well... the only thing stirring an Epi Cactus that bloomed recently, for its first time! Lovely white flowers, and a perfume-like scent!

I am hopeful of a bloom or two from my little Dendrobium, but I'm not holding my breath. It's growing well enough, but I don't think it gets enough light to set buds.

Rina, the only really bad pests we get are those greenish beetles that destroy everything in sight... and by the time they are adult, so are the praying mantises. We are lucky to have a good population of predators, so we haven't had too much trouble with various pests.

Thanks, Josh... Lilies and Daylilies are some of my favorite plants... relatively easy to grow, low maintenance, and beautiful... they make nice fillers in the rose beds.

Leave it to Al to come up with something that can make me smile and tear up at the same time. Thank you, Al! :-)

I don't yet have photos to share of my blooming Epi Cactus... or of the beautiful white world we awoke to the other morning, with hoarfrost clinging delightfully to everything... or of the animals grazing in pasture... or even the many flowers of last season's gardens. I hope to get them uploaded soon. I've been slacking terribly lately in the photo department!

We're getting ready to travel north for the Holidays. We'll visit the kids and grandkids for Christmas, then stay a little longer to celebrate a Birthday.

Hope everyone is safe with this crazy weather everywhere...especially if travelling.

We are having freezing rain in southern Ontario...pretty to look at but big problem with broken trees-power lines are down, streetcars not working, some parts of Subway out of service too. In Toronto there is still over 260,000 people without power, some areas may not be restored until Christmas Day or after. Hope hydro crews will be able to manage faster - they are all working, no holiday break.

Howdy, everyone! Ah, what a fine Christmas! Had a few ciders yesterday and a delicious meal with family and friends. Now things are a bit more quiet. Sun is shining and some plants are outdoors for the day.

Charlie, welcome. I'll look into that novel. I love to read and write. I just finished the first draft of my own short vampire novel (nothing like the current crop of emo-goth vampire fiction).

Hi, everyone! Had a nice Christmas Holiday, I hope you did too, but it was a busy one. We had 3 major food events within a weeks time, and I'm the cook in the family, so between getting ready for company & planning/making the edible goodies, it got hectic. I hope all of you guys had a very Merry Christmas, and get to enjoy a prosperous 2014 in good health.

We had the same ice storm Rina had. Lots of downed trees/branches/power lines, so lots of outages. We were luckier this time than the last storm, around Thanksgiving, that had us on generator power for several days, so I'm thankful for the reprieve.

Our drive is covered by about 8" of almost solid ice. We had several inches of super wet snow, then lots of rain & freezing rain followed by more snow, then a deep freeze. The result is a packed-down frozen mess that is almost impossible to move by hand. I'm thinking I'll be waiting for the same guy who put it there to take it away. ;-)

Whew! We have at least a foot, maybe 15" of new snow in the last 24 hrs from this big storm, plus the 6-8 " we already had - still snowing hard and the front is moving fast, so it's windy with lots of heavy drifting. I barely got out of my little circle-subdivision with a 4wd vehicle. It's 8* F now, in mid-afternoon, going down to -13 tonight, -3 Tues, -11 Wed, then back to something closer to normal temps.

We also had a power failure here at work today. I was trying to figure out how to move a car out of my garage to get at the generator, and how to get down the road in a truck to pick it up, because at these temps/wind the inside temp would drop quickly & pipes would freeze. Fortunately, the power came back on & saved me all of THAT scramble.

I often push the zone envelope, but even with the extreme cold, I'm not too worried about losing plants because of all the snow cover acting as an insulator ..... so I guess the snow is a good thing, in a way.

I hope everyone else bears up under what the weather brings. I can only imagine what the heat bill will look like this month. ;-) Keep warm!

We had a very cold November,December, and January is starting off cold. I have been paying most of my attention to my blueberries in raised beds. But every spring I still make enough 5.1.1 to fill 15 20gal containers." thanks Al" Stay warm! Mark. AKA Filix.

I guess I didn't realize your name was Mark, Filix. ;-) Show us your elephant ear/ elfette picture again?

Dear Diary:

Aug. 12 - Moved into our new home in Michigan . It is so beautiful here. The hills and river valleys are so picturesque. I have a beautiful old oak tree in my front yard. Can hardly wait to see the change in the seasons. This is truly God's Country.

Oct. 14 - Michigan is such a gorgeous place to live, one of the real special places on Earth. The leaves are turning a multitude of different colors. I love all of the shades of reds, oranges and yellows, they are so bright. I want to walk through all of the beautiful hills and spot some white tail deer. They are so graceful, certainly they must be the most peaceful creatures on Earth. This must be paradise.

Nov. 11 - Deer season opens this week. I can't imagine why anyone would want to shoot these elegant animals. They are the very symbol of peace and tranquility here in Michigan . I hope it snows soon. I love it here!

Dec. 2 - It snowed last night. I woke to the usual wonderful sight: everything covered in a beautiful blanket of white. The oak tree is magnificent. It looks like a postcard. We went out and swept the snow from the steps and driveway. The air is so crisp, clean and refreshing. We even had a snowball fight. I won, and the snowplow came down the street. He must have gotten too close to the driveway because we had to go out and shovel the end of the driveway again. What a beautiful place. Nature in harmony. I love it here!

Dec. 12 - More snow last night. I love it! The plow did his cute little trick again. What a rascal. A winter wonderland. I love it here!

Dec. 19 - More snow - couldn't get out of the driveway to get to work in time. I'm exhausted from all of the shoveling. And that snowplow!

Dec. 21 - More of that white crap coming down. I've got blisters on my hands and a kink in my back. I think that the snowplow driver waits around the corner until I'm done shoveling the driveway. Damned jerk.

Dec. 25 - White Christmas? More freakin' snow. If I ever get my hands on the sonofa----- who drives that snowplow, I swear I'll castrate him. And why don't they use more salt on these roads to melt this crap??

Dec. 28 - It hasn't stopped snowing since Christmas. I have been inside since then, except of course when that SOB "Snowplow Harry" comes by. Can't go anywhere, cars are buried up to the windows. Weather man says to expect another 10 inches. Do you have any idea how many shovelfuls 10 inches is??

Jan. 1 - Happy New Year? The way it's coming down it won't melt until the 4th of July! The snowplow got stuck down the road and the poophead actually had the gall to come and ask to borrow a shovel! I told him I'd broken 6 already this season because of him!

Jan. 4 - Finally got out of the house. We went to the store to get some food and a damned deer ran out in front of my car and I hit the thing. It did $3,000 in damage to the car. Those beasts ought to be killed. The hunters should have a longer season if you ask me.

Jan. 27 - Warmed up a little and rained today. The rain turned the snow into ice and the weight of it broke the main limb of the oak tree in the front yard and it went through the roof. I should have cut that old piece of dung into fireplace wood when I had the chance.

May 23 - Took my car to the local garage. Would you believe the whole underside of the car is rusted away from all of that damn salt they dump on the road? Car looks like a bashed up, heap of rusted cow flop.

May 10 - Sold the car, the house, and moved to Florida . I can't imagine why anyone in their freakin' mind would ever want to live in the God-forsaken State of Michigan

Lol Al! Having lived my whole life minus a couple of years in Savannah GA and Los Angeles just to see how the rest of the world lives, I knew exactly where that diary was going. And it was still hilarious. It's a wonderful state to live in if you don't have to go anywhere from December until March!
--Andrew (in Detroit, until I'm released to go back to beautiful Kalamazoo)

Laura - I know how rare more than an inch or two of snow is to you guys, but we hardly even give it notice. We have about a foot on the ground right now, and it's snowing ..... and that's after we lost about a foot of snow during a recent thaw & rainfall.

Hey, Al!
email notifications have been spotty for me, as well...although I was notified of your reply to this Thread. It could have to do with the "revamp" work that GardenWeb has been doing....I always notice errors whenever they bring in a new feature or new advertiser - especially new advertisers.

We have a chance at snow tomorrow! The Sierra Nevada mountains really need it. I'm sure you've all heard about the Droughtmongering going on here in California.

With the warm weather, the Narcissus have begun blooming about a week early.

I just moved 5" of fresh powder off my decks & driveway & the neighbors drive as well. Gotta new 2 stage Honda snow blower with caterpillar tracks instead of wheels and I'm a snow-blowing fool! We have about 2' on the ground, I'd guess. It's been sooo cold this winter. Cold doesn't bother me at all - just walked a half mile with the dog in a long-sleeved tee shirt and a cotton duck cloth vest @ 20* with a fairly stiff breeze.

Heard about the drought & lack of snow cover in the mountains. Have a friend in Fremont that grows citrus & she was telling me about how dry it's been. Said she lost mature lime, lemon & plum trees this year that just dried up. That stinks.

Thanks for the info on the post noticed. I haven't rec'd one in weeks.

This weather is absolutely crazy.. Last week we received 5 inches of snow then the next day it all melted . A few days ago we received a record 13 inches...

Al.. You are right, we just don't get the snowfall totals that you guys get up north and those freezing temps, but we did this time. We had the lows in the single digits and we never see temps go that low. I was worried about my palms, but all seems fine. Keeping my fingers crossed!!! We had to search for the heavy duty snow shovel that I bought a few years ago, just in case!!!

Thank you for the kind compliment on my Plumeria, this one is especially crisp and elegant with a beautiful fragrance to boot!!! I was very pleased with the detail In This one...

Hi Josh!!! I hope you guys get some much needed rain and or snow. I have seen the models on the snow pack from last year verses this year and I am just shocked. My friends In Southern Cali are all worried about this major drought and the fires that will be in the future.. It is very scary. You be careful! The Narcissus debut is a good sign!!! I wish we had some evidence that spring is in the forecast... I am Worried about this other storm they are predicting for this weekend..

Mike must be getting tons of snow.. I am sure he has had quite enough of this white stuff as well.

I am overnighting In the North East tonight and they are still plowing the streets ... the airport is a mess. Walking across the Tarmac was most dangerous tonight. I did take a tumble on the ice, but popped right back up. I guess I was lucky. The whole ramp area was nothing but A ice rink. Probably will feel it tomorrow!!! ;-)

Nice to see everyone.. Al, I can't believe you just wear a vest. Way to cold for me. brrrr..

Hey, man! Still freezing cold here. We had a couple of days of above freezing last week with some freezing rain, but then it was right back in the snowy deep freeze. Sunny & 7* now. Going down to -15 tonight & -11 tom o night, they say. That's pretty typical since before Chriostmas - coldest winter I remember ..... and much more snow than we usually get - prolly 4-5 times more than recent years, at least.

If you've ever worked for a boss who reacts before getting the facts and thinking things through, you will love this!

Arcelor-Mittal Steel, feeling it was time for a shake-up, hired a new CEO. The new boss was determined to rid the company of all slackers.

On a tour of the facilities, the CEO noticed a guy leaning against a wall. The room was full of workers and he wanted to let them know that he meant business. He asked the guy, "How much money do you make a week?"
A little surprised, the young man looked at him and said, "I make $400 a week. Why?"

The CEO said, "Wait right here." He walked back to his office, came back in two minutes, and handed the guy $1,600 in cash and said, "Here's four weeks' pay. Now GET OUT and don't come back."

Feeling pretty good about himself the CEO looked around the room and asked, "Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-ball did here?"

From across the room a voice said, "Pizza delivery guy from Domino's."

Al, sorry I missed your comment on 1/22! I must have forgotten to check the notification box, and I've been busy with papers and midterms.
Yes, I am a Michigan native. Born and raised in Kalamazoo, exiled to Savannah for college, sentenced to Los Angeles for work, came back to Kalamazoo on good behavior. I was promptly sent me to Detroit for 6 years of school. But Kalamazoo is where I belong, and I'll be back before long.
The irony is that I'm on spring break this week. And there's a good foot and a half of snow on the ground, and 4-5 foot mountain ranges bordering every road, parking lot, driveway, and sidewalk (up to 20 or 30 feet in some big parking lots!). I had been hoping to help my parents get some plants started this week, but alas, it was not to be.
And you're right: this is the coldest winter I can remember too. I'm trying to be optimistic about it. :-)

Just had another round of sleet and snow for a total of 7 snow days missed for the little ones. My problem is that when they close the schools, they close day care and guess who gets the call when I am in town? Ummmhmmm!!!
"MOI". It's alright, but every week? Really? I am so over this mess and I am ready for spring. I am dreaming about April and everything that goes with that beautiful time of the year.. ;-)

Here is a plumeria that already has a protector ready... To cute!!! This tree is in OZ....

Lol..Good one Al! Sounds like you have a batty of a problem...lol
You could always move your plants aside and make room.ha
I'm praying for an end to this miserable cold weather..How did the birds fare this year for you? Did they come back?

I did mention something about your frogs, but now I forget..
I hope all is well and that the real frogs will be able to sing again soon..This winter is just killing me..I think I know what it's like to live in a cave now...I'm as white as a ghost.

Hello Laura and Josh and every one else..Good to see you all surviving...I have not seen this cold for years...I am grateful my fish loaded pond did not freeze up..It almost did since I accidently shut the power off to the pond pump..It only too two days for the whole top to freeze over but luckily I noticed it and broke the top open so the fish could breath.
I also notice that my ground in the garden must be frozen at least more than 6 inches deep! I hope my bulb and perrenials make it through this.

Let's see, what else? I left all my potted plants in a dark area of my garden and they have been buried with snow since December..I hope they make it too by the time the thaw comes..Keeping my fingers crossed.

What else? Since I have been couped up inside, I have painted ever single room in my home and added a three seasons porch..That explians my absence besides sickness..

The only saving grace this winter was my greehoused plants, especially my orchids and two bull frogs inside! I actually downloaded brid chirping and sounds along with relaxing sounds and play that with my eyes closes in the nice very humid warm greenhouse on sunny days in this weather..Sure takes the edge off! All the orchids have come to bloom and many others..

Laura..What a beautiful picture of that frog!!!!!!! It's so postcard looking. I love it and you know how I feel about frogs! Thanks for that. Good to see there is still a REAL need for you while you are home, right?lol I remember was he was just born and when you visited me...Seems like yesterday.
Either that frog is so content, or just trying to stay warm.

Josh, Let it rain and rain, right? You could use all the rain you can get.Horay for the peppers buddy!

P.s..I talked to Jodik and she is ok..I am trying to get her back here...She's a gem and missed here.
So's Jojo..She is ok too..Says hello.

I've been so busy this year, I've hardly had time to feed the birds:
and I learned just this week that next year has the potential to be MUCH busier than this year if I lose a key man at work who is on the verge of leaving. In 2013 I committed to 3 garden walks for this summer, but I know I'm not going to have the time to keep my gardens in the kind of shape I'd want them in for the walks, so I'm going to beg for a year or two's postponement until I can devote the time.

We lost some snow today - actually saw a few bare spots of ground here & there driving home from work. Year before last I took a week off to do bonsai repots in the middle of Mar, since the temps had shot up into the upper 70s and 80s and stayed there for several days. I had buds breaking all over the place. This year, we can (literally) count the number of days above freezing since early Dec on 2 hands. We've had lots of snow, but not record amounts; but the cold cold cold temps are lower than I can EVER remember - and the day after day lows in the single digits to well below 0* is getting tiresome.

I am now the proud owner of 2 very tall copper planters. The tallest is 42" by 18". They both have top planting pots that are separate and fit down into the planter...So the bottom 2/3 is empty. Also, they do not have a bottom in them/good for drainage.The soil and plants make them top heavy. I need to securely weight them somehow before I add dirt and plants. I tried bricks and they both blew over in these wild March winds. Don't want this to continue. Any ideas for me? Thanks so much!